Break of Dawn
by NorthWest9
Summary: She hated everything they stood for, everything they believed in, and everything they were. But she is the King's Champion; his wish is her command. Tasked with protecting Legolas on his journey to find Aragorn, Rowan must keep the Elf Prince alive in order to win back her freedom. But it will prove to be harder than it looks as they face everything Middle Earth has to offer. LxOC
1. Chapter 1

**Break of Dawn  
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Chapter One : Night Watch

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><p><em>"I'm asking of you to follow him. Be his travel companion. He is intelligent, and brave, but he is young. And he will need your help." <em>

_"With all due respect your Majesty, I am not a baby-sitter." _

_"No," he replied, watchful as he stared out the opening to see his people regroup and care for the wounded. It had been a hard won battle, and the Elven King ached for the loss of his people, they would need him, and his son. But Legolas was firm in his decision to leave, and should he so take the challenge that lay ahead of him, he would need help to get there. "but you **are** at my disposal." he answered as the elf before him bowed slightly, face expressionless as the King turned to his subject, a thoughtful look in his eyes. "Do this for me, and I will grant you your freedom. See to it that my son shall complete his ventures, and stay him from his own demise, and you're depts will be repaid." he offered as the elf looked to him for any sign of false intentions. "You have my word."_

_The young elf pondered before turning to the king once more. "As you wish, my lord." _

_With that, Thranduil watched as the long black billowing cape of Mirkwood's Assassin disappeared through the crumpling halls of the wreckage left by battle. _

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><p>He was two days into his trek when he'd stopped for rest and to set up camp along the mountainside in a secluded area. The ride was long and trying but he was used to much more painstaking training and his stamina and fitness clearly proved such. His senses were raw, and heightened as he set down by the small fire to warm his hands when the first crack of a branch struck his ears. The wind that drifted through the trees had him believing that it was merely the fault of the elements, but a part of him was weary of the fact. A war had just been both won and lost, and sore soldiers would care about nothing more then to send his head back to his father as repentance for their demise. Dismissing the contemplation, his thoughts had shifted to Tauriel, a false sense of hope tugging at him, hoping it was her that had come to join him, but he quickly squelched the burning fire of hope that gathered inside of him. She wasn't coming for him, she had made her place and her feelings quite clear, and he'd been a fool to believe that would change. Moments later, another noise pulled him from his thoughtful reverie as the third struck him from his seat while he knocked an arrow and pointed his bow towards the wooded area where the sounds had emerged from.<p>

A whisper from the wind pulled his attention east as within seconds he felt the cold edge of a sharp blade suddenly at his throat. Careful to swallow, he lowered his bow only just and regarded the impostor with a calm front. "Thrice now your life was in my hands to be taken. Your focus is lessened Prince... life favors you tonight, but tomorrow may have different intentions if you're not careful." the stranger stated, whisking the weapon away with a few quick turns before it was sheathed. Legolas turned towards the cloaked stranger, bow raised once more as he stared at her with cold eyes. Face hidden, he was unsure of what to think as they stood motionless.

"Who are you?" he demanded, bow and arrow ready to be released.

Lowering the hood on the long black cape, Legolas was struck momentarily speechless in regard to the impostor that stood before him. It was an elf, but one he'd never seen before. Calculating eyes raked over her form as Legolas searched for any sign of obvious threat to him.

She was beautiful, different then Tauriel and the other fair elves of his kingdom. Her skin was smooth and fair, but with more color than the usual pale subjects of his species. Unlike the others, the elf had tied her hair up, a mess of ringlet filled locks held back as a few sandy gold pieces escaped their restraints to frame her face. Unlike the others of his kind, who were regarded as beautiful due to their sharp features, earthy hair and cool exterior, there was something strangely alluring about this elf that stood before him. Elves usually held an unearthly beautiful about them, but something about the stranger before him was that she seemed so naturally alluring. Like a woodland fairy or something of the sort. What caught Legolas the most off guard was her eyes. Elves weren't usually regarded for their eyes, but their long, free, hair. Her eyes though, were captivating, a brilliant electric blue stared back at him from under thick lashes with a look that suggested she was sizing him up just as he was doing to her. She had no braids, or accessories to frame her hair or face, and he felt the natural allure of her appearance was frighteningly distracting for him.

"I was sent by your father to aid in your quest. I'm too keep you alive Prince, should you stop trying to make said task so much harder."

"I don't need your help."

"Your father agrees. What he does believe you need though, is to remain alive. Not just for your sake or his, but for that of your kingdom and your people. You have suffered a great loss of forces in this past battle, your people cannot afford to lose their Prince as well, which is why I am ordered here to aid you in your quest."

A moment of silence passed as Legolas watched the stranger skeptically. "I won't have someone here unwillingly. Will you respect that at least?" he questioned as she stared back at him with a mask of no emotion.

"Respect your wish or not my lord, I am here to keep you alive. No matter your opinion on the matter or not, the King has issued his demand, and I aim to follow." she replied.

"You're not a guard, nor an Elven soldier. I have never seen you before. Do you hail from Mirkwood?" he questioned.

"You are not mistaken my lord. I am no guard to your father's kingdom."

"Then a friend perhaps?" he asked as she smiled humorlessly at him. "Or on loan from another settlement. Enlighten me, please. Your presence is a mystery."

"I am neither friend nor foe to the Elven King Thrandiul."

"Then an acquaintance?"

"I am your father's Champion."

"Champion? He's never spoken of you before. I didn't even know he had one."

"One does not usually bring the position up over dinner. Perhaps you can ask him about it when you return from your journey. Until then, you need rest. I will take first watch." she stated, pulling a beautifully crafted sword from the belt on her pants beneath her cape as Legolas watched her wearily. With no knowledge of a champion in the kingdom ever reaching his keen ears, he was unsure whether to trust her with his life while he slept. These thoughts mulled over in his head when he was pulled from his internal conflict by her feminine voice once more. "If I wanted to kill you, then I would have long before now. Rest easy my prince, you need not fear my blade tonight." she stated without looking at him as Legolas saw her eyes staring into the dark forest, her back to him as he stared her down.

Turning from her assessment, she smirked at his uneasy expression. "You do not easily trust I see."

"If you'd seen the horrors I have you would understand why." Legolas reproached as a dark look passed over the face of his father's champion.

"Of course." she bit back strenuously.

"Your name..."

"My liege?" she questioned in confusion as he smiled slightly.

"Your name, Champion. I never got your name." he offered in a softer tone as she nodded.

"Rowan, my lord. I was once called Rowan Thornbrush."

"Very well Rowan, I am Legolas." he nodded in acknowledgment as the girl turned to him and bowed slightly.

"Of course, but you are also my prince. And to that respect I will pay." she stated before straighting and meeting his surprised gaze once more. "There is a long journey ahead. I suggest you sleep. I will wake you when the watch is yours." she stated before taking a seat upon a boulder aways from the fire as he watched her stare out across the darkened wilderness around them. Her stance though significantly more relaxed, ready for battle as she clutched the elven-crafted blade in her hand.

Legolas lay awake under the stars as his attention drifted between the dagger he fingered in his pocket, and the King's Champion that kept a keen eye on the surrounding forest. "This will be an unsettling quest if you cannot learn to trust me your majesty." the feminine voice offered suddenly as Legolas turned to her with a questioning look about his tired eyes.

"Forgive me, but I am non to anxious to trust my life in the hands of someone I have never heard of. How do I know that what you say is true?" he asked, rising to a sitting position as the she-elf turned to her prince.

"Would proof ease your unsettled mind?" she questioned as he nodded. Watching wearily as she sighed and reached under her cloak and shirt, pulling up a silver pendant encrusted with crafted jewels and unique designs. Removing it from her neck, she threw it towards the prince who caught it and removed his eyes from her own to stare at the piece she had thrown him. "Crafted for every Champion Thrandiul kept hidden in his kingdom, to remind them of their service." she offered as Legolas turned the pendant over in his hands, admiring the beauty within the work of the piece.

"How many of you are there?" he questioned before handing her back her necklace as she placed it back around her neck and under her clothes with care.

Silence passed as his unanswered question lingered in the air between them. "Rest, your majesty. You have a long ride ahead of you."

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><p>First shot at a Lord of the Rings fic. Let me know what you thought!<p>

This story is POST The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies, and will most likely be following the movie-verse Lord of the Rings because I know there are some who have only seen the movies. which is fine, because they're pretty good too.

Hope you enjoyed!


	2. Chapter 2

**Break of Dawn**

Chapter Two : _Dagguards_

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><p>Legolas awoke with a start. The Champion's hand was flushed over his mouth so as to keep him from making noise, and his eyes narrowed. He knew she couldn't be trusted, he should have never been so stupid to have fallen asleep. Reaching for his dagger, her booted foot shot out to stop his grab for his weapon as she straddled his chest. Struggling under her grasp, Legolas was moments from flipping their position and slitting her throat when the hand muffling his curses forced his eyes to meet her own. Angered eyes met with stark blue irate ones as she brought a hand to her mouth in a "be quiet" notion, gesturing to the forest around them as she then pointed to her ears. Legolas calmed only just, still tense and poised for an attack as she slowly lifted her hand and foot from constricting his movements as she picked up her disguarded bow. Gesturing for him to remain at the site and keep quite, she knocked an arrow and made for the surrounding woods.<p>

Legolas knocked an arrow of his own as he scanned the area around the camp. He hated waiting, not knowing, and as the silence continued he grew unsettled. Orcs were never silent in their attacks, they weren't smart enough to plan a strategic attack. They relied on strength and numbers, overwhelming odds to defeat their opposition.

With that thought, his worry only escalated. If the Champion had ventured into the woods to protect him and was over run with Orcs, her death was on his and his father's heads. And while Thranduil had no problem sacrificing a life, the same couldn't have been said for Legolas.

What seemed like a millenia later, Rowan reemerged from the trees. Bow raised, Legolas lowered his weapon when he caught sight of her. Peices of incredibly curly, sandy blonde hair had strayed from the tie at the back of her head, and blue eyes were widened impossibly large, he assumed it was the excitement of battle still alight in her orbs. Her clothes were dishevelled and as she approached him she sheathed her Elven Sword and ran a hand through her hair. Her pace was brisk as she approached him, "My Lord, gather what you have, we make haste now."

"What happened?" he asked as she grabbed a satchel of weaponry she had aquired before leaving the kingdom, and mounted her horse. She road atop a great stallion, colour as black as night as a brilliant white spot sat on it's forehead, like a lonely star in the darkness as it's long hair was unruley and untamed.

"There is no time, I will explain on the way. Grab your things we must ride now." she answered as he sighed and threw his things into the pouches on his own horse. Mounting his pure white steed, he motioned for her to follow as they fled into the woods. His horse had been the purest of breads back in Mirkwood, he'd had nothing but the best and he'd chosen and raised his companion from birth. It carried him into battle, and across countryside countless times, and he was seldom seen on any horse but his own.

Breaking the tree line, his eyes were soon trained to numerous Orcs scattered around the forest. Black arrows sticking out of trees and disguarded weapons shrewn across the floor. It looked like a massacre. Turning back to look at the Champion, he was shocked to see her bow raised and poised for his head as a dangerous glint danced in her eye. "Duck!" she yelled as Legolas bowed close to his horse while the arrow sailed past him to hit an Orc that had emerged from rotting logs.

A sudden scream in black speech drew his attention back to Rowan as one of the remaining beasts leapt at her from the cover of the foliage in the trees. Knocking her from horseback as she fell to the ground. Looking behind him, Legolas watched her struggle as the monster brought down a heavy axe heaving towards her head. Pulling his horse to a stop, he turned and headed back towards them. "Don't turn back! Keep going!" the she-elf yelled out as she managed to kick the orc off and crawl out of the way of the axe it brought down where her head had been only moments before. In the initial take down, it seemed as if Rowan had dropped the sword that was strapped to her side, and couldn't get a hand up fast enough to retrieve her bow and arrow.

Legolas knocked an arrow on his bow as he raced back towards the flailing two, desperate to aid the Champion and get out of the woods. Grabbing a hold of the dagger strapped to her leg, Legolas watched her thrust the blade deap into the side of the Orc's neck, rolling away from it as she pulled herself up and wiped her blade on the ground beside her, scrambling to her feet as she whistled for her hoorse and threw herself on it's back. Repositioning her weaponry and her clothing before kicking her horse into a gallop as the prince turned his stallion and followed suit. The angry scream of black speech filled the forest again as he heard the Champion curse in their native language before pulling the reigns on her horse and dropping back to follow the prince.

"What are you doing?" he demanded as the elleth cursed again and yelled for both horses to ride faster.

"I've got your back covered. We have to get out of the forest!" she called out as Legolas tried to think quickly about where it was he could take them that they'd be safe. There were many smaller elf settlements around, but he needed one big enough with a population that would scare off the oncoming Orc attack should they continue to follow. The familiar sound of arrows sailing through the air brought him from his thoughts as he heard a cry from behind him, only to look back and see the Champion clutching her left arm.

Legolas knew at that point he was short on time, and running out of options. "Follow me!" he called out as he pushed his steed through the thick forest, riding hard as he followed the familiar markers that would lead him to Lord Malben's settlement. An hour more of hard riding, Legolas continued to check on the she-elf following behind him. Within the last leg of their ride, he noticed how much she was falling behind. Swaying on her horse as the prince cursed before seeing the break in the tree line where Malben's estate towers broke through the tree line. Grand establishments strongly resembling Rivendell, only opposite side of the Misty Mountains.

Racing over the bridge that connected the forest to the city, Legolas was stopped at the gates by an elven guard armed with bows and arrows poised for his head. "Brothers! I am Legolas Greenwood, son of King Thranduil, and I seek refuge within your walls. My Champion is injured, and we wish to speak with your Lord. Let us through!" he demanded as the gates opened after a moment filled with weary tension. Seconds later, their horses carried both the Champion and Legolas through the threshhold to be faced with curious onlookers, one being Lord Malben as an armed soldier took the reins from his horse while Legolas stepped down from the saddle before gesturing to the rider behind him. Turning to check on his riding companion, he watched as she collapsed upon her horse and fell to the ground with a harsh impact that made the prince cringe in worry. Rushing forwards, he was pushed from the girl as healers rushed her to the medical wing of their rhelm.

"Lord Malbern..." he greeted the Lord as both bowed to one another as a sign of respect.

"My prince, what brings you to my walls?" he asked as the young elf followed the Lord up the stone steps of the castle, admiring the beauty of the city while he walked through. "Without the accompanyment of your usual guard, or Captain. Your presense is a surprise, you catch us off guard." the elf mused as Legolas observed the Lord's actions and movements.

"I was traveling when my Champion and I were attacked early this morning, and she was hit with one of the Orc's arrows. I fear the poison has had harmful effects on her."

"Fear not my prince, your champion is stronger than she looks I'm sure." the Lord smiled reassuringly before leading Legolas through a collection of grand rooms and halls and showing him to a room where he was welcome to rest and refresh himself. His clothing was cleaned, and his weapons taken to be sharpened by the armory within the city. Hours later, he surfaced from his room refreshed and rejuvinated. Joining the Lord, he found himself in the courtyard, surrounded by royals, guards, and friends of the Elven Lord as they ate and toasted graciously to the King, the Prince, and good wine.

Upon looking around at the dusk that befell them, Legolas caught sight of a mass of robes that closely resembled those of which his Champion had been wearing earlier that morning. "Lord Malbern, please tell me that's not my Champion out of the medical wing already?" he questioned as the elder Lord merely chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.

"My healers tell me she was up within hours of treatment. Refused to stay put in her bed. Some companion you choose to ride with Prince." he grinned fondly as Legolas merely nodded.

"Still my lord, should your healers not keep her confined to bed until she's recovered?"

"If you don't know how stubborn she is already than you have much to learn your majesty."

"I never knew she existed until she showed up at my camp holding a knife to my throat."

"Yes, interesting encounter indeed I suppose."

"She said her name was Rowan Thornbrush... I've never heard an elven name quite like it. I question which settlement it is she hails from." Legolas stated, lost in thought as his eyes turned to gaze upon her form again. Cape billowing behind her in the wind as she stood watch over the towers.

"Yes, she seems to believe my guards aren't up to quite the standard she would like." he mused as Legloas nodded before falling into silence again, one that was once more interupted by the Lord. "She's had many names over her years..." he mused as he follwoed the prince's gaze to the young she-elf. "I knew her when she was just a young one, as Arradel Maethil..." he offered as Legolas turned to him in surprise.

"That's Sindarin..." he said in slight surprise as the Lord nodded. "_'Without a path, lost in battle'_?" he questioned the translation as his elder merely nodded.

"Surprisingly fitting." he stated. "You have to understand that not all elves belong to such privileged communities as those in which you have seen on your travels. There are some, like your Champion there, that were born to the confines of the dark forest. Bred for battle, born to the life of a warrior. They keep to themselves, they fight for themselves, and they follow no man... and no elf. Consider yourself lucky she strays not far. She will be a good companion for you to have on your travels."

"How do you know of her?" Legolas asked as the Lord turned to face the young prince.

"It was many years ago when I was visiting your father, along with many other Lords from around the kingdom. Your mother had gone out for a ride with the guard and strayed from the land when the sight of smoke caught her attention. Against the wish of her guards, she approached the carnage to find a clan of deep forest elves, slaughtered, leaving non but the young elleth in it's wake. You were young at the time, on a trip with the guard to Rivendell to see Lord Elrond and his sons." the Lord began as Legolas became lost in his words. "You see it was at that age you began your training as a warrior... where though Arradel may have been younger than you, as soon as she could walk she was handed a sword with her fate engraved on it. She never stood a chance. She was wild, rebellious and couldn't be tamed as a lady of the court. Despite her wild and rare beauty, she was dangerous with her skill set. When your father realized this, he ordered her execution, but your mother talked him out of it... but the young outcast was beyond the help of the guard, so she was kept hidden within the kingdom. She competed in tournaments in other rhelms for the king, and was at his disposal whenever a particularily messy issue arose. She was expendable... and when she came of age, she was crowned his Champion. Born and bred of a different world but taken into yours. She stayed in honourable promise to your mother, who had saved her all those years ago. When she died, that dept was passed to your father."

"Ada you speak of her as if she were noble and honourable..." Arveldir, the Lord's eldest son smirked as he joined the group along with some of the others. Turning to Legolas, he bowed and grinned wickedly before speaking, "They say she was once turned an Orc, that was sent to the depths of hell before they spat her back out again. That she delved so deep into darkness the very slime that made her Orc turned on itself and fled her body. And that's why her beauty is unlike any other."

"I heard she killed the lot of her clan by herself in a childhood tantrum, and burnt the remains." another of the guard piped in.

"Faelon said she once took on a pack of fifty Orcs and slayed them all without so much as breaking a sweat on her brow." Another exclaimed excitedly, "and that she could shoot the light off a star with both eyes closed."

"I heard they used to hire her to charm men out of their secrets with her beauty, before luring them to bed and slitting their throats in the night."

"Well that's what a Champion is isn't it? A murderer?"

The guard continued on, telling stories of great gore and far-fetched plots, but Legolas was concealed within his own mind, pondering the story the Elf Lord had shared about his travel companion. "You'll have to excuse them my boy, they were raised on tales of beauty and power. They haven't much else to do around here other than train and gossip. Like hobbits the way some of them talk." the Lord smiled fondly as Legolas turned back to the post at which the champion sat, to find she wasn't there anymore.

"My Lord, if her clan followed no man or elf, why is it they train in the art of battle?" Legolas questioned as the Lord smiled.

Leaning in, Legolas matched the Lord's movements to better hear the explanation as they looked at one another. "Honour, my son." the elf whispered as the light from the fire ignited in his eyes. Stating his reply as if it were the easiest answer in the world.

"Legend has it they were decendants from the past Kings' elite guard, in a time where darkness could be found in even the brightest light." he explained, his voice making the story come alive as his eyes danced to a different time, lost within a memory as he spoke. "They were heros in the kingdom, idolized by all, and they held a code of conduct that was nothing if not moral. They were a match for no beast in the rhelm. Gods of battle." he smiled fondly. "When the dark age fell, they were cast into the shadows to show the people that such protection was not needed, and that people needn't fear danger anymore. The King dubbed them outcasts. They were stripped of their titles, and thrown from the kingdom. Their skills were no longer needed, but a group bred for battle knew how to do nothing but fight. So they fled. The subjects feared what they didn't know, so banished from the kingdom, the once great warriors vanished into the wood, pushed from their homes by those who feared their power. And when the darkness came, and the kingdom needed saving, there was no one there. Resentment turned to hate, and hate turned to fear. They were welcomed no where, and even the name struck fear into the land." he explained as Legolas found himself thinking back to that of the Champion he traveled with. "With time, stories of greatness, heroics, and moral guards, turned to those of dishonourable murderers. And as the years passed, the new generations forgot who they were, only a number of elders remembering the stories, and even less who remembered the times."

"How do you know these things?" Legolas questioned. He knew the Lord had years upon years on himself as well as his father, but he'd never heard of such stories before. And he knew more history than most others.

He watched as the Lord looked around before pulling on the neck of his tunic, showing the edge of an inked image that had been branded into his chest. "Not all of us were pushed to the woods my boy. Some of us were lucky." he whispered before falling back into his chair. Legolas merely stared at him as the Lord took another sip from his wine. "I cast that life behind me when I met my wife. I created a life, perhaps not one of complete honesty, but I did what I needed to do in order to make a better life for myself and my family."

"Why are you telling me this?" Legolas questioned.

"You asked son," the Lord smiled lighty, and with a sigh, added "besides... you will need to know the story of her past now, in order to understand everything it is she does in the future."

Turning from the Lord, Legolas was surprised to see the Champion approach, hood raised and weapons strapped in their places. As if she were ready to leave at that precise moment. Stopping before the two, she bowed slightly in respect as the guards looked on in silence. "Lady Champion, it's been many years my child." The Lord smiled as Rowan nodded in returning gesture, no emotion upon her face as she acknowledged his greeting.

"Likewise my Lord." she offered.

"Stories of your skills travel far Arradel... it's pleasing you have grown to be such a gorgeous jewel. The queen, may she rest in peace, would be proud." at the sound of her name, her gaze snapped up as she locked eyes with the elder.

"It's been many years since that name was spoken. I had come to think it had been forgotten."

"I think not, my child. The Greenwood assassin has been a legend in these woods since she showed up on the throne room floor."

"Yes, apparently after being spat back out from the depths of hell, and slaughtering my clan if I'm not mistaken." she mused as the guards flinched with guilted sheepish looks on their faces while Legolas stifled a laugh.

Turning to the prince, the Champion bowed again, "The trees speak of trouble on the move your magesty, I suggest resting up, we should have an early start at dawn."

"I understand your eagerness Champion, but I have business to attend to here. Our stay may be delayed." Legolas stated as the elleth merely stared back at him for a moment in silence, expressionless as he returned her gaze.

"As you wish my lord." she stated before bowing slightly and making her absense with a sharp turn and the billowing of her cape behind her.

"Consider yourself lucky your magesty..." the Lord exclaimed intuitively as he stared after the young girl, a far off look in his eye. "We were raised first to hear the whispers of the wind, and second to speak our own language. She will be of much use to you on the journey you seek in the future."

Legolas turned from the Lord to watch as she retook her place amongst the towers on watch. "How is it she doesn't sleep? Surely dreams should take her from the world of the living to rest her _sometimes_..."

"She is an assassin my prince... her _life_ is a nightmare." Malben smirked as he took another drink from his wine. "But make no mistake..." the lord stated as he drew Legolas's gaze and kept him to stare what felt like deep into the depths of his soul. "No matter her beauty, or her stories, or her acts of great valour, she was bred a warrior above anything else, and you'd be wise to remember that."

"I beg your pardon."

"I see the way she's looked at my boy. I am not a fool. Her beauty is captivating, and alluring, and something about the elleth holds your thoughts, but she will fufil her dept, and then she will flee. You must remember the King's _Dagguard_ are bred for war, not for love. She is not your companion, she is your Champion." he stated as Legolas reguarded him with an expressionless demeanor.

"Dagguard?"

"'The Guard that Slays'..."

"Then how is it you have a family here?" Legolas asked suddenly. "If these '_Daggaurd'_ were once your people, and you truly believe they cannot love, then how is it you are the way you are?" he asked as the Lord smirked and leant forwards to answer the young prince's inquisitive questioning. He was happy to know that non of their other guests were even mildly interesting in their conversing, it provided somewhat of a relief knowing the others hadn't much knowledge of what they were talking about.

"It's more of a question of family my son. While I had an important position, I was a pawn, a soldier." he offered. "_Agarwaemen Maethil_ though, was a great leader... the greatest warrior the elven kingdom has ever seen. The same soldier that single handedly made a name for the Dagguard..."

"Not possible... It couldn't be."

"Arradel, the only offspring of the _Captain_ of our great guard." he stated while rising to his feet, placing a hand on the young prince's shoulder as Legolas pondered this new information.

"She will always be the Captain's daughter first my boy. Born of a lost legacy. Better you learn this now than later."

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><p>You guys will have to excuse any spelling mistakes. Hopefully their not too bad. I'm using a friends laptop until mine's fixed and she doesn't have spell check, and for some reason neither does Fanfiction docx for some reason.<p>

Hopefully it lived up to some expectations. More to come next chapter hope you enjoyed it!

Let me know what you thought!


	3. Chapter 3

Break of Dawn

Chapter Three : Conflict in the Courtyard

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><p>Legolas watched warily as the Champion carved at a small piece of wood from a distance across the courtyard. He walked through the outside hallway, cruising through the pillars as Legolas watched her work, before handing it to a small elven boy that sat near her. It wasn't often that children were seen wondering around alone. Most times they were in their homes with family, studying, or if they were of age, training. This was an abnormality. The Champion was showing the elfling the cuts and carvings she made, the young one looking on in undivided amazement.<p>

It was strange, watching Greenwood's most feared assassin act out with such gentle compassion and interest towards another. Legolas watched and listened as she spoke to the child in hushed tones as she carved the wood carefully with skilled hands. Legolas heard her telling stories of great heroics. Of guardians that fought fiercely for honour and courage. She spoke of a beautiful princess trapped away in a castle surrounded by a feirce fire breathing dragon, and of a brave elf that defied all odds to save his love. The elfling watched on with eyes that danced with excitement and wonder as the Champion told him of how the two in the story, despite being from different words, were smitten with one another and ran off in the forest together. By the time she was done with her story, the little one's eyes were as wide as sausers at her tale, as she handed him what looked to be a small wooden Elven soldier as he took the toy and rushed off. The Champion watching after him.

Legolas was surprised to watch her shoulders sink in defeat as she watched him go. This was intruiging. If what Lord Malbern said was true, than she had no feelings. And if that were proven to be right, than how was it she seemed to have so much emotion in her voice as she spoke with the boy.

"My actions interest you?" she questioned suddenly as Legolas simply stared at her. Ignoring her question from before when the prince didn't answer, she asked another. "Do your affairs continue so?" her voice shocked him as Legolas was momentarily struck speechless as her voice carried across the courtyard. Standing, she brushed the dirt from her trousers before approaching him. Legolas noticed how she was always dressed for war, prepared for combat. She was hardly ever without her weapons, and she barely looked in less than prestine conditoin for battle.

"Your eagerness is refreshing. But I'm afraid these politics some times take longer than even I would like them too. When we are ready to leave, then I will inform you myself." he offered as the elleth stared back at him as he tried to match her gaze. He couldn't meet her eyes though, for longer than a few moments before the stories he'd heard nights before overtook his attention and he found himself unable to hold her gaze any longer.

"He's told you." She accused suddenly, no change in her expression as Legolas reeled in surprise. He knew that knowledge of her was the only advantage he had over her, knowing about her past and her people. How is it he'd come to lose that advantage so quickly as well?

Laughing slightly, Legolas shook his head with a small smile. "I can't help but admit that your perception is remarkable." he stated. "To be quite honest few people are able to see through me so easily... But alas, he did. Lord Malbern did indulge in some of the Daggard's legends-"

"Do not speak of my people." she cut him off without disreguard. "Those stories were not his to share." She spat as Legolas was speechless. She'd been nothing but courteous and professional during their time together, treating him as her superior since they'd started their journey, and this was the first time she'd ever acted out or spoken out of term.

"Be he too was-"

"He forgets what our people did, who they were and what they stood for. He abandoned everything we were for another life. He does not remember how we were cast from our own kingdom and people, and reguarded as outcasts and traitors. How we were useless and defenceless against the attack from our own frontier. That our stories and our history is ours and ours alone." she hissed angrily as Legolas saw a dangerous passionate glint flame within her blue eyes. "If you'll forgive my tone, _prince_, but royalty has made him soft. Lucious wines, beautiful elves, plush beds. He forgets sleeping on cold stone grounds, and the pain hunger leaves in empty stomachs. He forgets the agonizing seer that betrayal leaves scarred on a warrior."

Legolas watched in awe for what seemed like ages. Her eyes were blazing, her hair wild and her hands practically vibrating at her sides.

Moments later, after gasping and reeling in her emotions, the Champion realized how close she was to Legolas and stepped back, bowing respectively as she tried to control her raging thoughts before it made her do something rash. "I apologize your majesty. That was out of line, and it won't happen again. If you'll excuse me." she stated quickly before all but running from Legolas's presense.

"Wait!" he called out, grabbing a hold of her arm and pulling her back to him. "You are my _father's_ Champion. You may have been sent to serve me and keep me alive, but you are my companion. You will not be reprimanded for speaking your mind." he stated as the elleth merely stared back at him in surprise for a moment. Pulling her arm from his grasp she bowed slightly and once again left without another word. This time, Legolas did nothing to stop her from leaving.

Stopping at the other end of the courtyard, he watched as she hesitated before stopping and turning to the prince once more. "You'd do well to hurry your political affairs my lord." she called out as Legolas looked at her curiously, it was almost as if she were threatening him.

"Any particular reason Champion?" he asked as she stared back with an expressionless face, eyes still blazing from before.

"Because despite whether or not you would like this trip to either end sooner, or take longer, the truth of the matter is that the forest speaks, and trouble is coming." she stated before turning and making a leave once more before he could do or say anything about it.

"I find it utterly amazing you still make an attempt my boy." Lord Malbern's voice cut through the silence of the courtyard as Legolas stared after the elleth's retreating figure for what could have been an hour, but caught up in his own thought's, he couldn't be sure how long he was there.

"I beg your pardon my lord?"

"I have told you of her nature. I tried to explain it too you, and yet you still try to understand the weird ways she works. I don't get you..." the Lord smirked with a shake of his head. "Come my boy, I have visitors from the south that wish to speak with you."

"I think I may just try my luck with the guards, I feel that I won't be able to sit for long in a throne room amongst strangers." Legolas sighed with an apologetic smile.

"I think not my son, they travel with the finest elleths in the land. Their beauty is unmatched by all." he exclaimed, placing a hand on the young prince's shoulder as he pulled him back towards the castle. "Perhaps even beauty to counter your Champion's." he added under his breath almost silently as Legolas tried to believe he'd imagined the Lord's comment.

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><p>hope you enjoyed this chapter as well! it's mostly a filler until the next big thing! SO to all my lovely reviewers, you all fuel my writing. Thanks guys!

Let me know what you thought! Next update to come soon! :)


	4. Chapter 4

Break of Dawn

Chapter Four : Trouble in Paradise

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><p>Weeks had passed that Legolas fell into routine with the court of Lord Malbern's city. He was accepted and enjoyed his time there, drawing connections and mapping his up and coming travels as he searched for links between the Striker and other happenings and people. Among researching his upcoming travels, he also acted as a royal liaison, delegating in his father's name and attending important meetings that created a strong link for the elves of the Lord's kingdom, and the royalty that represented their race in Middle Earth. He loved going between whichever meetings he wanted to be in, and training with the guard when he so chose. He had dined with the Lord every night and listened to great tales of a different time as his interest in the fallen Dagguard soldiers grew with every tale.<p>

The Champion, he noticed, did not share in his sentiments. She was in a completely different state of mind all together, always on edge and never without her weapons. She seldom ate with the court even when invited, she rarely sat and rested and she peered over the woods from the watch tower as if she were searching for something straight time. Like impending doom was only a small step away at all times.

She hadn't bothered to mention the dangers that the trees whispered of since the day Legolas had brushed her off all those weeks ago, and she rarely said two words to him. Come to think of it, Legolas hadn't seen her really interact with anyone. Despite this, like clockwork everyday she sat and conversed quietly with the small elven boy that had caught her attention one of their first days present in the city. It was intruiging, and it shocked and surprised the entire court, guard and delegates both, but no one questioned the occurrence. The young elfling seemed just as happy to sit and listen to the Champion talk for hours in hushed tones, and she seemed to enjoy her time with him when he was there. One of the few times Legolas caught wind of their conversation, the young elf had asked about why everyone called her "The Champion". He asked her if she'd won something, and why everyone seemed to fear her so much. Legolas listened from behind the cover of the pillars in the grand outside hall as her answer called to him like a siren.

"I won something, of sorts." she started as the boy pushed for more. Sighing, she continued with much resistance. "When I was young, about your age, I was placed in a competition by the King. I was against the best soldiers in the guard, and like them I was tested to a very difficult level of skill. I ran, fought with swords and staffs, and shot bow and arrow with them. We were placed against eachother to see who was the best. It was almost like a game. Like when you race your friends, if you're the fastest, they ask you to run places more often because you're the fastest out of all of them. Whether it's running to tell your parents you're playing in the wood, or running messages back and forth to and from friends. They ask you to do it because you're the best." she exclaimed. "That's what I am. I'm the best, I _'run the fastest'_, and I fought the greatest out of all the guards in the kingdom, so I won. So because I'm the best, the King sends me to stop bad things from happening. Things that would hurt a lot of people. I get rid of all the things that could hurt you when no one else can. Because I'm the best."

"Then why are some afraid of you if you get rid of the bad things?" the elfling questioned as the Champion sighed and scratched the back of her head, almost as if she were working on trying to come up with a good excuse.

"People will always fear what they don't know." she offered with a bought of slight sadness in her voice.

"Okay, but why do you guard Prince Legolas if you're supposed to fight the bad things? Are there bad things coming for him? I thought he was a good fighter, are you even better than the Prince?"

"I'm here to help him. He is very good, but he is still young. There is a lot of Middle Earth he hasn't seen yet, dark and scary things that he may need help with. And that's what I'm here for, to keep him safe and help him. And help you. To try and be a sheild for him from the dark and scary things."

"Then I think you're a good friend to him Champion." the young elfling stated before running off at the sound of his mother's voice calling him. Legolas remained motionless for a while as the Champion sat in silence. After what seemed like ages, he listened as she rose to her feet and trudged out of the courtyard, her footsteps seeming impossibly heavier than they had been since he'd first spotted her.

Returning to his room Legolas, fell asleep with the Champion's words weighing heavy on his mind, but despite his goodnight's rest, not all in the city slept as well as he did.

The first arrow flew early morning before even the early risers had awoken. The guards were on the last leg of their shifts, and required much rest to recuperate and the new soldiers to take over their positions were only just rising.

They were growing smarter in their attacks, the Orcs. At first hiding in the forest, and now... attacking at the break of dawn when least expected.

Arradel had seen it coming for weeks now, and she had tried to warn them countless times but to no avail. Now the city would suffer the plague of an Orc attack because they'd taken her words with no haste whatsoever. And so for that, they would pay the price for their insolence.

The first elf hit with a black arrow fell from his post, catching the corner of her eye as the Champion turned to see the first of the Orc infestation climb over the city walls. One by one she sent arrows flying towards the beasts falling over the edge but without backup she would be over run in no time at all. Knocking two arrows, she shot them towards the warning bell atop the lookout post and wondered where the guard on rotation had been that was meant to be scanning the forests for danger. She hoped the first ring would at least alert some type of help. Three arrows later she knew her first warning had not been enough. Knocking another arrow, she aimed into the bedroom window of the prince. Letting loose the arrow that shot into his chambers, she hoped it would alert him to some avail. The arrow would draw his attention away from his sleep to the Orcs raining down over the walls and he would tell the Lord to sound the alarm.

She reached back for another arrow to find that her grasp was empty, she was trying to grab air, she'd used the last of her arrows. Huffing, she dropped her bow and pulled her blades from their sheaths as she ran down from her spot towards the oncoming Orcs. By now the origional strike of the bell had awoken the elves that lay asleep in their chambers. Groggy but prepared for battle, the elves raced into help the Champion hold back the onslaught of Orcs that rained down over the city walls.

"Champion!" a roaring voice suddenly called above the roars of the battling elves and orcs around them. Whipping around, Arradel saw Legolas emerge in his slacks and tunic, blade haphhazardly strapped to his side and bow and quiver on his back. His eyes were wild when she met his gaze, and raising his bow he shot an arrow past her, so close she felt the wind off it's tail kiss the skin of her fair cheek as she saw the orc approaching her from behind fall to the ground dead. Turning back around, Legolas was smirking when Arradel released a dagger from under her robes at the prince, watching as it sailed past him, repaying the favour as it imbedded itself into the eye of the monster that had gathered behind him while he was distracted. "What happened?!" he called out, running to her side, slashing through orc after orc on his way towards her as she watched him in slight awe. It had been years since she'd seen skills like his. He would have been a great warrior, given if he were actually able to listen and trust his fellow soldiers.

"I told you!" she yelled at him, twirling her blade like the harbinger of death as she took down three more approaching orcs that had dared to challenge her sword. "I told you of the dangers that were coming, but you didn't listen!" she said again as she fought along side of the prince.

"If we had left when you said then they would have attacked the city and these elves would be without our help!" he argued back, slashing through another orc as they both stopped and turned to one another suddenly as they were momentarily left with no opponents as the enemy regrouped.

"If we had left when I told you the attack would have never happened! I told you, I told you several times that there was danger lurking in the woods!" she hissed before resuming her place in battle. Legolas was struck in a surprised awe as he watched her weild her blade against her opponents.

Shaking some sense back into his head, he tried to focus back on the task at hand. "You expect me to take your word for it when your only proof is that 'the trees have whispered to you'?" he demanded in disdain as the elf cursed in her native language.

"You royals are such fools!" she yelled angrily. "You believe that you are untouchable, and that nothing beyond your own little worlds exist. But you are mistaken, there is much more magic, wonder and darkness beyond the confines of your plush pillows and exotic wines." she stated irrately as Legolas scoffed. She knew nothing of the royal life and responsibilities, she was in no place to judge him, or any one of his people for that matter.

"Maybe if you shared more, or let someone in, others would be more inclined to trust you." he threw back as the Champion scoffed.

"My position is not to tell you bed time stories, or dine with your women of the court. I am here to _protect_ you..."

"And I must protect _them_. I brought this on them, it's my duty." Legolas tried to explain as the Champion sighed before slashing through another Orc and watching it fall dead before her.

"I'm sorry my Lord, but my allegience isn't to them. It's to your father, and I'm too keep you alive no matter the cost."

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><p>Buckbeak3798 - wow I'm really glad you like it so far thank you for the review! I love hearing from readers! hope you liked this chapter as well! lemme know what you thought!<p>

MsRose91 - glad you liked it! thanks so much for the review hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!

cutesango07 - i'm so glad you liked it so far and like her attitude! I think I may perhaps follow the movies, I know for a fact some unfortunate souls haven't read the books but just watched the movies, and while the movies may not capture the entire essence of the books they were still pretty good so I'll follow the movies just so everyone can follow along and not get lost. hopefully that's not too disappointing for anyone. hope you enjoyed this chapter as well! and thanks for the review!

hope you all liked it, let me know what you thought, and HAPPY VALENTINES DAY


	5. Chapter 5

Break of Dawn

Chapter Five : Dismissed

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><p>"I will not leave them!" he argued defiantly as the Champion cursed and slahed through another approaching Orc that had dared raise an axe in her direction. Her patience wore thin with the prince, and she was only seconds away from knocking him out and carrying him from the city without his permission.<p>

"Legolas!" she yelled suddenly, using his name for the first time as he turned to her in surprise and stared at her raging figure, blue eyes ablaze with irate anger as he simply stared back at her like an elfling being scolded by an elder. "You are no good to them dead!" she all but screamed at him as the Prince scoffed and shook his head. "I can get you away from here, and I will stay and help clean up this mess once that I am assured you are safe. My _only_ priority is you, my only _concern_ is you. But if this is what it takes to get you out of harms way than I will, be it irately, return to the city to provide the guard with an additional blade." she offered as the prince answered her proposition with a glare containing numerous bouts of disbelief.

"I_ will not_ leave my people when they need my help!" he answered as she cried out angrily.

"What your people _need_ is a prince that knows what's best for himself and his kingdom. I cannot protect you if you so willingly put yourself in harm's way!" she argued as he huffed and released another arrow that stuck through an Orc's forehead, sending him tumbling to the ground.

"I don't need protecting!" he yelled back as a scream in black speech errupted from behind him as he turned quickly to find an Orc that had tried to sneak up on him only to be met with the blade of the Champion's dagger. Walking up with an irate rage in her step, she ripped the dagger from the beast's eye socket and wiped the muck that clung to the blade on the monster's dirtied rags.

"You are a naive imbecile!" she hissed angrily, slashing through countless more orcs as Legolas watched her in amazement. Her lean body moved like a fairy dancing in the wind as her blade wielded in her hands like an extension of her arms. There was no second guessing in her graceful movements and her crystalline blue eyes jumped in excitement as the hazy storms exploded at the danger around her. More curly sandy blonde locks had escaped her hair tie, and there was a healthy flush to her fair skin that spread over her flawless completion as she exerted the energy required to slaughter every opponent that dared approach her. "You all think yourselves as untouchable and indestructible.," she spat as she continued in combat. "but you don't see the lives you put in danger by being irresponsible! You don't see the chaos that follows the falling of a kingdom!"

"I will not abandon my people!"

"I'm not willing to give you a choice." she stated as she pulled the sword from the midsection of an Orc and turned to face the prince. He couldn't believe his ears, never in his entire life had anyone ever spoken to him in such a manner other than his father.

"I am _ordering _you." Legolas stated, ruled by his strong emotions as the Champion scoffed and turned to look at him, a dead look in her eye as she approached him, one meaningful step at a time. There was no longer any anger, irritation, scorning, or contempt on her face... just a deadly loss of emotion. It was expressionless, like she had dropped every emotion that owned her humanity, and turned it all off.

"You once told me that I was to regard myself as your travel companion, not your subject. Now I exercise that right as you have offered it." she threatened as Legolas stood his ground and met her gaze as she stopped only a few short inches from him. "You seem to forget, _my lord_. I don't wirship your kingdom, I don't bow to your throne, I don't praise your title. My people fought so you could have the right to sit atop your fancy chairs and drink your exotic wines, then you banished us, cast us out as if we were nothing. Our allegiance meant nothing to you then, and it means nothing to me now. I am here to keep you safe through hell and high water because I gave my word. Should that mean I drag you, bound and gagged through the gates of the city, then that's what I will do. I will kill any man, Orc, or elf that dare stand in my way, mark my words."

"Mark _my_ words Champion, if you wish to take me from this city while it is under siege than you can count on fighting more than just the orcs. I made a promise as well once upon a time. I swore to protect these lands and the people in them, and if that means I have to go through you to do it, then I will." he stated defiantly, spoken like a true prince. "Now, unless you wish to fight me _and_ the orcs, I suggest you clean your blade. That was only the warm up." his words rocked the Champion as she stood staring at the prince before her. "I didn't ask you to be here, as you said... my father did. If you do not wish to stay then I forfeit you and your services. You have saved my life quite enough in the past few weeks, more than enough times you have had my back. You are free to go, I will see to it that my father knows of your excellent service, and your dedication to your word. Thank you, you're dismissed."

Legolas turned to regroup with the city's guards when he heard the champion's voice call out behind him once more. "I will _not_ be dismissed like some petty little hand maiden. I am Arradel Maethil, I am the Greenwood Champion and I have conquered more enemies than your pathetic excuse of a guard could ever _dream_ of! You underestimate the terms of this wager, and if you cannot be responsible for your own safety, as well as the kingdom's... than it is _I_ that will forfeit _you_ of that right."

"Wha-"

"I'm sorry prince... but it is for your own good..." she stated as he felt a sharmp pinch suddenly in his shoulder before the world around him faded into a black abyss. His bones and muscles failing him as he slipped into an unwanted unconsciousness.

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><p>Just a quick short update to get you through until the next installment. Hope you liked it!<p>

Buckbeak3798 - I'm glad you're liking it so far. And as or them trusting each other, you'll just have to wait and see. Haha, thanks for the review!

MsRose91 - I'm glad you're enjoying the story, and thank you for the review! Hopefully this chapter was just as enjoyable as the others!


	6. Chapter 6

Break of Dawn

Chapter Six : Apprentice

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><p>When Legolas finally awoke, he was faintly aware of the throbbing that pounded behind his eyelids. He groaned as he rolled over to be greeted with a surprisingly plush comforter. Sighing, he suddenly shot up from his bed in a flash and looked around the room in surprise and shock. He didn't know where he was, or how he'd got there, but he was almost sure it had something to do with the stubborn headed Champion.<p>

Unexpectedly, a white hot rage shot through him like a virus infecting his cells. She'd disobeyed his orders and blatantly ignored everything he'd said and done. He couldn't believe it. He'd never felt so betrayed. She may have been assigned to protect him, but he was his own person, he had the right to make his own decisions. The city was under attack, they needed his help, he was supposed to be a leader... he was supposed to _lead_ them. But instead he looked like a coward fleeing battle. Standing from the bed, he was surprised to still find himself in the clothes he'd thrown on before running into battle, but all of his weapons missing.

Leaving the room, Legolas wandered down the stairs to find himself in a quiet tavern. Walking over to the bar, he gathered the attention of the bartender as the middle aged man turned to him with an impassive look. "Excuse me, I'm looking for a girl..." he stated as the guy behind the bar scoffed and shook his head.

"Aren't we all..." the man smirked before stopping whatever it was he was doing and looking up to meet the elven prince's eyes. "Don't see why, that bird that carried you in here yesterday was one hell of a looker. Little aggresive for my taste, but I guess I could see the appeal." the man mused as Legolas sighed in impatience. He didn't know where he was, what time it was, or where the Champion had come to be, but the latter of the three negatives seemed to give him some peace of mind. He wasn't all too keen about seeing her again any time soon. "She left this for you, by the way." the man stated as he passed over a folded piece of paper to Legolas with neat ink scratched across it as he snatched it and settled down in a secluded booth in the corner of the room.

_Legolas,_

_You forced my hand, and I will not apologize for keeping you safe. Your rent is taken care of, and your clothes are in your room. I have taken your horse, money and weapons, so as to keep you from fleeing, and the town guards have been instructed that they are not to allow you to leave under any circumstances. I must stick to my word and return to the city, as I promised. You are in safe hands and I will be back soon to collect you so that we may keep moving. Lord Malbern's city is in good hands, worry not. _

_I will be back soon._

There was no signature, or date to give any close as too how long Legolas had been unconcious, but there was no way he was just going to wait around until he was retreived like some pet. He was an elf, a Greenwood, a soldier, and a prince. He took orders from no one let alone some petty Champion he hardly knew. Standing from his seat angrily, he ripped the parchment with the neatly scrolled letters and stormed towards the door, ignoring the look from the bartender as he ripped open the wooden door only to stumble backwards with the staggering figure that collapsed onto the ground before him. The sound of ragged gasping breathes filled the room as Legolas was momentarily shocked into silence as he took a moment to realize just who it was that collapsed at his feet. "My Lord!" a voice suddenly shouted as one of the guards from Malbern's court dismounted a grand stallion outside the tavern and rushed to the door where Legolas still stood paralyzed in surprise.

"What's going on?" he demanded as the guard knelt by the Champion before looking up at him.

"She removed you just as another seige came. Guards brought you here and the Champion had everyone in the village paid off to keep their mouths shut about the hole thing. She stayed to fight, but we couldn't hold them off for long so she asked me for help. We fled the city through the main gates with hoods on. Her on her horse, and I on yours. We were a distraction, but we didn't realize how effective it would be. The guard didn't have time to arm themselves fast enough and we had to give the city a chance. The orcs followed us into the woods and we were overrun, but we lost them in the southern wood yesterday. I had no idea she was hit until she collapsed only last night. She'd been like this ever since, I don't know what to do, I was never trained as a healer." the elf exclaimed as Legolas learnt down to pull the hood from her head. Her eyes were glazed over and her skin was deathly pale and clammy, he cursed when he held a hand to her skin to feel her burning fever as all previous bouts of anger left him momentarily. "She saved the city my lord. I mean no disrespect, but the orcs came for you, and when they thought you'd left, so did they. If it hadn't been for her idea, I don't know what we would have done..."

"Come on, we have to get her upstairs." Legolas stated as he bent down and picked the Champion up, one arm under her knees and another behind her back as he carried her up the narrow passage way and into his room. Ordering the guard away, he sent him for bandages, herbs, water and food. Legolas wasn't sure what was wrong with her yet but he had to get her cleaned up and treated before infection, or whatever had taken ahold of her body, spread.

Hours later, Legolas sat dabbing the sweat off the Champion's brow. Her fever had dropped, but she stirred every few minutes like she was stuck in a bad dream. Her skin was still clammy and pale, her lips had chapped and her symptoms changed every time Legolas _thought_ he was close to figuring out what was wrong with her. All through the night he stayed by her side, piling on more blankets, watching helplessly as she thrashed in her sheets, and dabbing the sweat that beaded on her skin. He didn't know _what_ he was supposed to do. All he could do was sit and wait, for what, he wasn't sure yet, but he knew that he'd done all he could. She wasn't strong enough for him to move her anywhere for better treatment, and he didn't know who he could trust in the town, or if he could trust anyone at all. He couldn't risk leaving the tavern, not without his weapons, and he had no idea where the Champion had stashed her's for the time being.

Legolas couldn't risk running through town after a healer, and he didn't know what and who else he could call or ask for help. He had too much pride to run crawling back to his father, no matter who it was on their death bed, and to be quite honest it was too dangerous to try and travel with the Champion ill and maimed anyways. She'd sooner get them killed then anything else.

Suddenly, the Champion shot up, eyes wide and a looked of pure horror on her face. Yelling out words in a language that Legolas didn't understand as he tried to restrain her only to have her panic and struggle more, but she was stronger than she looked. Jumping on the bed, despite how unprofessional it was, and definitely _not_ how he was raised, he couldn't afford to stir up a ruckus down stairs in the pub. Straddling the thrashing Champion, Legolas pinned her to the bed as tears began pouring down her cheeks, a panicked look in her eyes as the prince tried to calm her down.

"Champion!" he called out, trying to break her of her wild reverie. "Champion!" he yelled again but to no avail. "Rowan!" he tried as he cursed when she only struggled harder against him.

He didn't know what to do. He couldn't afford to have her hurt herself, or waste much needed energy she required for her recovery.

Suddenly, the door shot open and a cloaked elf burst into the room before spotting Legolas tried to hold the Champion down. "She's having some sort of break down, I can't hold her. She's going to hurt herself..." Legolas explained as the stranger strode over towards the bed, Legolas moving as the elf knelt down towards the Champion, holding her down by her shoulders as he leant down, almost as if to whisper in her ear.

"Her name?" the elf asked as Legolas was momentarily struck speachless, the stranger had appeared from nowhere to aid him, and yet he didn't even know her name? What was he supposed to say? Should he reveal her identity to the stranger or not? "Her name! Now!" he hissed again as Legolas simply stared at him, trying to decipher what exactly it was the cloaked elf was trying to accomplish.

Scoffing, the elf shook his head before turning back to the Champion. "_Calaerien..._" he called to her in a whisper as Legolas was struck speechless at his words. What was he to think? She had yet _another_ name he didn't know of? And who was he? How did this stranger even know of her? How did he find her? Had he been trailing her? Could he be trusted? "_Nunc autem requiem meam calido. Pax tibi puer nuot..._" he whispered to her in the same language that Legolas had heard her use in her dreams, the same language the prince didn't understand from before, one he'd never heard in his many years on Middle Earth.

But surprisingly, the Champion settled right down as the stranger stroked the girl's hair and looked down at her. Standing from the bed, the elf turned and stalked towards Legolas who boldly stood his ground, and stopped before him, sizing the young prince up as his face remained expressionless.

"Odd for a future king to be waiting on his servants, is it not?" the man asked almost in contempt as Legolas glared back at him for the uncalled-for accusation.

"She is not my servant. If you knew her half as well as you seem too, you would know that would be relatively impossible." he bit back angrily before turning to the Champion that lay resting in the bed behind the stranger. "She's saved me countless times, I owe her my life." he stated a little more calmly as the stranger looked between the prince and the Champion before stepping back and lowering his hood.

His features were striking. He was tall, broad, and handsome... seemingly only _just_ older than Legolas as an unreadable look passed across his eyes, one that he couldn't hide as the prince pondered to himself what grounds he had to warrant such a look.

"She is nothing if not gallant." the man stated with a nod as Legolas turned to him with a confused look about him.

"Who are you? And how do you know of her?" Legolas questioned.

"I am Hadron... Calaerien is my apprentice, or at least she was."

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><p>on the run I'll catch up with my review shoutouts next time<p>

hope you like it! lemme know what you thought!


	7. Chapter 7

Break of Dawn

Chapter Seven : Daughter of the Light

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><p>"Apprentice?" Legolas questioned as the elf merely nodded with an estranged look on his face.<p>

"I left the guard when threats from all over flooded our kind. The soldiers and their families knew we were in danger, but the Captain refused to believe it, he thought we had no enemies... that nothing was mighty enough to overpower us. And he was right until they were taken by surprise. I was training his daughter at the time," he exclaimed, pointing to the Champion as Legolas followed his gesture. "to take over his position when I escaped. I left before we were attacked, and after losing everyone, she never forgave me. Though, I hardly blame her... it's a feat I myself would never be able to do, let alone ask of someone else." the man offered as Legolas tried to wrap his head around what was going on.

"She survived when everyone else died?" Legolas questioned as the elf sighed and nodded solemnly.

"It was horrific." the man shook his head. "The town was slaughtered, but the Captain's pride and joy was his daughter, regardless if she wasn't the son he'd wanted... so she was hidden, but the beings that invaded them were smart. By the time she'd fought her way out of her first execution, they decided something so strong should be worshipped rather than slaughtered. At first they worked on recruiting her by force. They burnt profanity into her skin, and beat her to submission but her father raised her to never turn her back on her own people. So on the brink of death she was cruisified outside the settlement as a warning, and a threat to whoever should pass or fratinize with the guard. It was there your mother found her and brought her back to the kingdom. Pleaded with your father to aid her, and saved her life." he explained.

"What of these monsters that committed such heinous crimes?"

"They fell off the face of Middle Earth, haven't been heard of since." he answered. "Whispers rumour they hid in the shadows... hiding, _waiting_ for the last survivor. _Waiting_ to finish off what they started."

Legolas turned back to the Champion and felt the pity creep its way into his chest. He knew she'd bury him six feet under if she knew he was pitying her, but he couldn't help the feelings that welled up inside him.

"How did you know she was here?" he couldn't help but question as the man scoffed and shook his head, taking a seat at the small table set up in the room as Legolas quickly followed suit. Curious to know how easily it was that their cover had been blown.

"Just because I abandoned the guard, does not mean I was prepared to abandon her. She was like a little sister too me. I was the only one she would listen too growing up, my shadow, still to this day I'm not entirely sure why. But I kept an eye on her all these years, or at least I did when your father didn't have her locked away." the elf exclaimed. "I knew it was her stupid plan as soon I saw the horses racing right out into the middle of a war zone yesterday. Never one for much caution that girl." the elf smiled fondly.

Legolas followd his gaze to look upon the Champion once more. In the past few short weeks, he'd underestimated how much she'd actually done for him and his life. And despite the nagging reminder that she was paying off a dept, he couldn't help but feel at least the smallest bit remorseful of how he'd been treating her. He hadn't exactly made her job the easiest in the land.

Looking at her now, despite the overbearing sickness that loomed over her, Legolas still found she was erotically beautiful, but something about her still rubbed him the wrong way. "You called her by a name earlier... I've never heard it used before. Was it the name she was given at birth?" he questioned as the elf nodded before turning back to him.

"When she was born to the Captain of the Dagguard, they rejoiced so much that the celebrations lasted for days. He named her _Calaerien... '_daughter of the light_'_. When she was old enough, her name was changed to Arradel to better fit in with those she was training with in the guard, gave her the added edge of intimidation, and again to Rowan when she was taken by your father as a Champion. They call her many names across your kingdom, but the one she was born with sticks out in her mind the most."

"Why is that, if no one ever calls her by it?"

"All her other names were given too her out of darkness and fear. The one she was born with was the only time she was ever seen as more then just a machine bred for battle." he answered as Legolas nodded.

"I don't know what to do. I can't pinpoint what's happened to her, and I don't know how to fix it. These aren't normal symptoms of the poison on the arrows and blades the orcs use, I don't know how to help her." Legolas admitted defeatedly as the man stood and reached into his pocket.

"There is a new danger that lurks in the forests prince, and you'll have to be more careful from now on." the man answered cryptically before pulling a small clear vile of black liquid from his robes. "Give her this, and when she awakens, speak no word of my presence." he ordered as Legolas nodded and stood to his feet, taking the draught from him as he headed towards the Champion's bedside to administer the medicine.

"Legolas..." the elf called out from the doorway as the young prince looked up to him in time to see the flash of pride that clouded his eyes before vanishing. "She's a good kid, and you seem like a wise boy, but I see the way you look at her." the man stated as Legolas tried to come up with a disagreeing arguement that would suffice in convincing the man. Not that he had much explaining to do, he didn't have to explain himself to anyone, and there was no truth in the stranger's words. "You will hear many great tales of her past and her skills, but despite what the Lords of your Elven Kingdom may tell you, she _has_ a heart, and however deep it may be locked within her, be careful if it is you that breaks it from it's cage. Because she will only love once my lord, and if it is you that brings forth those feelings, and you crush them, you risk taking away from her something even more precious than life." he exclaimed.

Legolas stood silently as the elf retreated towards the door before stopping to enlighten him once more before he dissapeared again. "For you may be able to excuse the way you look at her, but you cannot excuse the way _she looks at you_."

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><p>thank you everyone for the awesome feedback I've got so far, I'm overwhelmed by the response so far it's awesome!<p>

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